At least two people died in bomb explosions in Iraq, hours after the US vice-president arrived in the Baghdad for talks about the future of US forces in the country.

Three separate blasts rocked the city on Thursday, Iraqi interior ministry officials confirmed.

Joe Biden, the US vice-president, flew into Iraq on an unannounced visit.

He held talks early on Thursday with General Lloyd Austin and James Jeffrey, the US ambassador, at the American embassy in the Iraqi capital. Biden's visit was the first by a senior American official since Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, was re-appointed for a second term last month. "I'm here to help the Iraqis celebrate the progress they've made. They've formed a government and that's a good thing," Biden stated. "They have got a long way to go."